OQ WEEK 3
by ourheroregina
Summary: One-shots for OQ WEEK on tumblr.
1. Chapter 1

Day 1 : Outlaw Bandit AU.

From an early age, Regina was a wild child. She chose to play chase or ride a horse instead of playing a tea party with her dolls like other girls. She liked to run in the fields and be dirty, shoot arrows and do crazy things.

But her Mother had been strict and Regina's wildness were restricted.

However once Cora was away, Regina would change from dresses to pants and a shirt and then she would ride a horse all day, run in the woods and enjoy her freedom.

And even now, when Regina's eighteen year old, she hasn't changed. She still has this wild and crazy side inside her, locked deep down because her Mother has told her enough times that no one is going to love a girl like she is.

But it doesn't matter to Regina. She would rather be unloved but free.

Regina has waited for this day the whole year and now she's staring into the mirror in her huge bedroom, running hands through her tight long dress smiling widely because it's the day when Mother is leaving for two weeks and Regina's father has already agreed that once Cora's away, she can go to the woods and do whatever she wants. And she can't wait for that.

She hears someone calling her name and it means it's time, Mother is leaving. So she rushes out of the chambers and runs to the yard where her father is already standing with her Mother and servants, a huge smile on her face. It's just a few minutes and then she's free.

Regina hides her smile by making a sad expression (she's a good actress if there's a need) and hugs her Mother, says that she will miss her a lot.

Her Mother sits into a carriage and leaves without waving a goodbye like her father would've done. But Cora is not her father, she's far from him and Regina kind of got used to it, to her being cold and heartless but sometimes it still hurts.

Despite the sadness of her Mother's action, she has to fight a smile which appears on her face. She's finally free. Mother is away and she can do whatever she wants.

As soon as the carriage can't be seen anymore, Regina sighs in relief and rushes to her room. She quickly changes to the clothes which she has been hiding for a long time because Mother wouldn't approve but she's not here anymore and won't be for two weeks.

It doesn't take a minute until Regina has collected her things and is standing in fronf of her father who doesn't look so enthusiastic as before about all this but he's already agreed and he can't change his mind now, can he?

"You have to come back after two weeks," Her father reminds as he pulls her into a hug. It's hard for him to let her go, she knows it, it's hard for her to leave him too but it's the only chance and she can't let it slip through her fingers.

"Of course I will, Daddy," She pulls away from her father, "And thank you," She mutters, hugs Henry one more time and then she's running out of the castle, after all, every minute is important.

She runs through the Enchanted Forest, looking over her shoulder every minute or two. She's heard stories about it and it doesn't say anything good and if she really wants to go back after two weeks or at least have a little fun before dying, she has to be careful and fast.

But suddenly something grabs her by a leg and she's up in the air head down. Her first instinct is to stay still (she has learned it through her life with a very strict mother) but then she's screaming and fighting, because it's not the Mother, it's something else and she has to fight for herself.

She squirms and screams and tries to reach the rope which is under her ankle but it's useless and then there are quick steps as if someone is running. She freezes and closes her eyes tightly in fear, that's it, she's going to die.

It's quiet for a moment but then a sharp sound echoes and there's a smashing. She falls on the ground then, she doesn't understand how but she hits the ground heavily and then someone is holding her by her arm and dragging her away. Is she dying or dead already?

It takes a moment until she realizes that her eyes are still closed, so she opens them and looks around but that someone who probably saved her life is dragging her too fast, she can't understand where she is or what she's seeing.

So after a few more minutes of running, when he slows down a bit, she manages to escape his hold. She stops completely and the stranger turns to her quickly. It's a young man, her age or a little bit older with blue eyes and messy hair. His clothes are shabby and he's obviously not the member of a royal family but it doesn't matter at the moment because he's the one who saved her.

But before she can finish checking him out, he grabs her hand again and they're running. And even though everything is happening so fast, she manages to think that perhaps it's not the best choice to let a complete stranger to lead her someway but she's obviously in danger, so she doesn't counter.

She wanted adventure, that's what she's getting.

They run and run until she's breathless, really breathless, and she has to stop. This time the man lets go of her hand himself, and it earns him a little bit of respect, at least he's not robbing her. She rests her hand on her knees and breathes heavily as if has run a marathon – she almost did actually. The man doesn't look as breathless as she is, but his breath is heavy as well.

At first they are quiet, just taking deep breaths, staring at each other but then she decides to speak, her sassiness doesn't let her be quiet, "I had the situation under control," She crosses her arms over her chest (it's something she has learned from the other Queens who visited their castle) as if she wasn't panting breathlessly for air just a few seconds ago.

"A simple thank you would suffice," It's all the man says.

And she smiles a little, he has sassiness as well. But then her smile fades and she lifts her head up and announces, "You ruined my plan."

The man gives her a look which makes clear that he knows she was without a plan there. She gives him a glare and then turns around, takes a few deep breaths, her lungs still in need for more air.

"If you want to live, we should continue running," He says in a quiet voice and she turns around, looks at him inquired. "I mean we can walk, if you're too tired to run," He adds.

She nods her head, although it's not what she was asking with her look. She thought that it was over, that he will go his ways, and she will go hers, but appears that their trip is a little bit longer than she thought.

The man starts walking first and she's walking behind him, and she likes it this way – he knows the forest, he knows the traps, he leads the safe way, she hopes.

They walk in silence for a few hours, just tired sighs are heard. Regina has already lost tracks, she's completely lost now and if this stranger turns out to be a murderer, she's dead, no way to escape this confusing forest.

But then she shakes her head for herself, perhaps he's a good man. She has to hope.

She has to get to know him if they're going to walk for a while together, she thinks. After all, they need to at least know each other's names.

"My name is Regina," She says behind him, her voice small and quiet, shaking just a little bit.

If he heard her, he ignores it because he doesn't say anything, doesn't even stop, he just continues walking through this dark forest.

She sighs to herself, yes, it was a stupid idea to introduce herself, he's not a friend and won't be one, he's just a man who saved her life. She chuckles at that to herself. It's ridiculous. She almost died today and it's the day one. What will happen after a week?

But the man suddenly stops - she almost bumps into his back – turns around and looks at her with a look she can't quite understand. He could be scanning her, he could be getting ready for a murder. Who knows?

"What are you doing here?" He asks as he takes a step closer to her.

She has to fight the instinct to step back, she has to be strong here if she wants to survive.

"I'm running from the King," Her voice is quiet and shaky, it's not what she's expected.

"Why?"

"Because I'm a thief, I got caught," She says it without another thought and is surprised that the story sounds so truthful. But on the other hand, she had learnt to lie a long long time ago because otherwise she wouldn't have a normal life, Mother wouldn't let it.

"Oh,"

"Oh?" She repeats, crossing her arms over her chest just like a few hours ago with a small pout on her lips. She scolds herself for acting like a child – she's in the middle of the Enchanted Forest on her own but she's still acting like a child. It's crazy.

But suddenly things change and Regina is no longer pouting at him because he has a knife pressed to her throat. Her breath hitches as her eyes fill with tears because damn, he's doing to kill her. Perhaps she was wrong about him.

"You're lying," He announces, "Your clothes are expensive and you look too innocence to be a thief. So what are you really doing here?" He asks and presses the knife tighter to her throat and she closes her eyes.

There's no time for lying anymore. Taking a shaking breath in, she tells him, "I'm a princess, Regina Mills. Please, don't hurt me."

After a moment, the knife against her throat is moved away, not much but it doesn't hurt anymore and she takes a deep breath in, her whole body shakes. The man is still standing in front of her, close enough that in one move he could cut her throat.

"What are you doing here?" He asks again, this time his voice isn't as harsh as before.

It takes a moment or two until Regina finds her voice and tells him the truth, tells him about the two-week agreement with father while her abusive Mother is away.

Something changes in the man's eyes and he takes a step back, drops the knife. He looks at her one more time and then a smile strange smile appears on his face, "I can help you to find the best adventures."

"I can tell," She says and there's sarcasm in her voice but damn, she can still feel her legs shaking after his attack.

"You'll die here alone," He points out and she groans because he's right. "So, coming with me?" He asks and she hesitates but does she have other choice? She's lost in this forest.

So she nods her head and he grins and then starts walking. And like before – he's the one leading the way and she's following him.

They walk in silence just like before. And it's good because Regina has time to think about everything what happened in the past few hours and she realizes that this trip is completely different from what she has wanted. She didn't think it would be this dangerous but oh well, she knows it now.

"I'm Robin of Lockley," A voice snaps her out of her thoughts. It's the man who said it, the one who's walking in front of her.

She grins; perhaps they really did make a peace.

After several long hours of walking surrounded only by trees, Regina's eyes catch a smoke and tents. It's probably the camp site, Robin has hinted about it on their way here.

Robin stops walking completely, and Regina stops as well although she has no idea why they did that. But then an arrow flies near them. It almost touches Regina's shoulder making her heart beat faster and her body tense.

But then Robin laughs and walks further to the camp site. He says something but Regina can't understand, she's standing far away, and then men appear from the tents with arrows and bows in their hands.

Regina takes a step back but these men don't seem dangerous because they're laughing now with Robin, all of them. She exhales then and her body relaxes just a bit, they're not dangerous, she thinks.

Suddenly they turn to her and stare while Robin tells something she still can't hear. She feels insecure once again and she looks down at her hand, cursing herself for being such a foolish girl. It was so stupid to think that she would fit in the forest. She should've stayed home, she really should have.

She hears steps and immediately looks up from her hands. She's relieved when she sees that it's Robin. Although she doesn't know him and shouldn't trust him, she thinks that with him she can feel safe. Or perhaps it's just another stupid thing her inner voice tells her to do.

"Merry Men agreed to let you stay with us," Robin says when he's standing right in front of her.

She feels dumbfounded. She thought that he'll get rid of her as soon as he has a chance and now he's offering her to stay with him and his men.

But she can't turn down an offer like that.

So she manages to nod her head, whisper a thank you with a small smile playing on her lips. She's still not sure it's a good thing to agree, to stay in the forest but she's always wanted it, it was her dream from an early age. So she decides to stay.

That night, Robin offers her to sleep in his tent. And at first she says that it's not necessary, she's always dreamt of sleeping under the open sky but it's getting cold already and the idea of sleep in an open air doesn't seem so good anymore, so she gives in.

Regina lies down in the tent, pulling a thin blanket, which doesn't look like a blanket at all, it's dirty and with holes but she doesn't care because it's better than nothing, over her. She curls into a ball and then closes her eyes.

It doesn't even take a minute until she falls asleep.

She hears strange sharp sounds, people laughing and talking loudly and she frowns, pulls a blanket over her head annoyed that someone disturbs her sleep but then she remembers where she is.

Her eyes open widely as she sits up and looks around.

She's in the Forest with unknown people. _But she's safe._

She realizes that it's probably the middle of the day, she was so tired, she probably slept a little longer than she's expected. She shakes her head to herself and then gets out of the tent.

The men are sitting around the fire but there are not all of them, but Robin's here. Others are probably hunting, she thinks as she walks closer to the fire.

"Good morning," she says quietly and sits down in the empty space beside Robin.

"Good afternoon to be exact," He teases and she opens her mouth to apologize but he just smiles. She returns a small smile but then frowns as her stomach growls. "Ohh, someone is hungry."

She wants to roll her eyes but stops herself when he hands her something what looks like a chicken wing. She mutters a thank you but then wastes no more time before digging into the food.

Once she's finished the wing, he tells her to go with him. And she says nothing to it, she just stands up and follows him to the woods.

She's surprised when he tells her that it's her first archery lesson but she's more than happy for that. Perhaps this crazy trip to the Forest wasn't that bad…

Since then everything is better and better. Robin teacher her archery, explains her how to avoid traps and how to escape them, he tells her his secrets about successful robbery and other things which a good thief has to know.

And then the fun begins: she starts living a thief's life. She steals and runs and drinks and repeats everything and she realizes that it's the life she's always wanted. Despite the awful start, she doesn't regret coming to the Forest, it's probably the best decision she's ever made.

There are injures, her arms and legs are wounded, covered in blues but it doesn't bother her at all because she finally feels alive, she feels crazy and free. It's indescribable feeling.

And so two weeks pass quickly, too quickly. There's still so much Regina would like to do but time isn't at her side.

It's the day when Mother comes back and if she doesn't want to get caught, she has to rush home. She has to but she doesn't want to, there's a different.

She's laying in a cold tent wide awake although it's still early, the sun hasn't raised yet, thinking about all the possibilities to stay. Yes, she could stay here and risk everyone's lives but be free or she could home and not be a problem for anyone.

She rolls over on her side and smiles a little when she sees a sleeping Robin. He hasn't been sleeping with her from the beginning but a few days ago she's told him that he can join her because now she trusts him, he would never do something what she doesn't want to, and, after all, it's his tent. So he joined her.

She feels a strange feeling which makes her heart warm every time she looks at him. That's another reason why she doesn't want to leave.

But she has to.

So she gets up quietly but quickly, grabs her bag and then gets out of the tent.

The campsite is still quiet, everyone is sleeping, so it wouldn't be hard to escape. She looks around the campsite one more time, smiles to herself because she will never forget this place, and then she starts running.

She gets tired quickly, she's still not fit for the Forest life, so she slows down and starts walking. She still has enough time to go home, she hopes.

But then she hears steps behind her. Her body tenses unwillingly and she starts to go faster again but the steps are getting closer and closer and then someone grabs her by the hand, forcing her to stop. The hold is gentle and she recognizes it without even turning around – it's Robin.

"No goodbye, milady?" He asks when she turns around.

She wants to smile, wants to joke with him but she has to go, there's no time for that.

"I have to go," She says quickly and tries to escape his hold but he doesn't let her.

"I know,"

"Then you have to let me go," Regina looks up until their eyes meet and then somehow he's leaning over until their noses are touching, her breath stuck in her throat. They have never been this close.

Is he going to-

And then he does it.

He presses his lips gently against hers making her eyes close instantly. She has never been kissed before and it's wonderful, it's sweet and soft and her body fills with joy and warmth, her knees go weak. She's thought that her first kiss will be completely different – she thought of a prince charming on a while horse, but it's even better.

She doesn't want a prince when she can have a thief.

"Robin," She whispers against his lips. No matter how good it feels, she's running out of time.

Regina manages to pull from him until she can find his eyes. She's pleading him to let her go with her eyes, it's already hard for her and he's making it even harder by kissing her and letting her know how he feels.

"Stay," He whispers back.

Her eyes widen in shook as she starts shaking her head repeatedly. Hasn't he heard what she's told him about her Mother?

"Are you crazy?" She asks, stepping back. "My Mother would kill me, Robin. She would kill you as well and all your men. No, no, it's impossible, I can't."

But he pulls her close again. Their eyes meet and she sees that he's not scared at all. It annoys her because he doesn't know her Mother, it seems he doesn't understand what her Mother is capable of.

He puts his palms on her cheek, strokes it gently and she wants to cry because it's hard for her, it's really hard, she doesn't want to leave but she has to think about him, about her father, about others.

"I can save you from her."

"No, Robin, no," She shakes her head and then tears starts rolling down her cheeks. Why can't he just let her go? It would be better for everyone.

"Regina, I can protect you and I will, just give me a chance." He says. Despite the tears which are running down her cheeks, she wants to laugh because it's stupid, he's crazy.

She looks into his eyes and one part of her wants to believe him. She thinks that perhaps she should give him a chance because she only lives once and it's better to have a short but happy life than a long one without happiness, always wondering how could've life turned if she chose to take a risk.

She lifts her palm and touches his cheek, his stubble tickles her palm and she smiles at that but then her eyes close as the tears start rolling down her cheeks. It's not supposed to be this hard.

"Okay, she whispers after a moment of silence. She opens her eyes then and finds him staring at her with wide eyes.

"Okay?" Robin asks in disbelief and she chuckles quietly.

"Okay," She repeats and then she's the one leaning over to kiss him.

She doesn't know what is waiting for her now. She doesn't know for how long she'll live or how long it takes her Mother to find her but she does know one thing – at least she took her chance to be happy, she didn't turn her back to the happiness.

 **Feedback is always appreciated! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**MISSING YEAR!**

Everyone is worried and overreacting a little bit too much.

Since the day they returned to the Enchanted Forest, Snow doesn't leave Regina alone. Every morning and evening she comes to check-up on her and during the day she usually is never alone, there is Charming or Show or someone else from the castle with her because they're afraid that she'll turn into Evil Queen again and then hurt them of herself. They think that she's fallen into depression, that she's a sick woman.

And perhaps they're right but she won't admit it.

It's the day like any other when Regina is walking through the woods in silence with Snow. Usually they walk like that because Regina is deep in thoughts or she just teases Snow about everything until she gets annoyed and stops talking.

And today is no exception. But after a few hours of walking in silence Snow White decides that it's time to quit it.

"You can't be like this," Snow starts and Regina rolls her eyes – she's really not in the mood for hope speeches, but before the Queen can protest, Snow continues, "You have to move on. You have to find someone to love again, Regina,"

She doesn't answer because she knows that her answer would be harsh and probably hurt Snow and she doesn't want that, at least not now. But she also can't get out of her mind Snow's words. Snow would probably leave Regina alone if she would fall in love and then she could be free again. But Regina could never do it, not now, not ever.

But then an idea hits her. She could fake a relationship, of course she could. She wouldn't need to fall in love, open up or get attached to someone, it would be just a simply agreement.

A huge grin spreads across Regina's face as she praises herself for such good ideas. A fake relationship, why hasn't she thought about it before? It could help her solve the majority of her problems.

Regina turns to Snow and finds her looking at her with confusion written all over her face. Mood swings are usual for Regina but still Snow looks curiously at her, as if she feels something is different this time.

It's such a reckless decision, Regina knows that, she should think more about this fake relationship thing, but she can't stop herself from shocking Snow, so with a deep breath in, she says, "Perhaps I've found someone already,"

Snow gasps in surprise making Regina grin again because good, that's exactly what she wanted: to shock Snow, to make her believe that she's moved on, that there's no need to check up on her every single hour.

Snow quickly recovers and looks at Regina curiously making Regina roll her eyes again because Snow wants to know every single detail like all those years ago. But this time, Regina can't and won't say anything because at first she needs to make things up in her mind.

"Who's the lucky one?" Snow asks and Regina shakes her head disapprovingly. It seems like decades of pain haven't changed Snow at all. She's still that annoying curious kid.

"I won't tell you,"

"Robin Hood?" Snow asks raising an eyebrow. She and others from the castle have seen so called sexual tension between the two of them. Some inhabitants of the castle even made a bet that it won't take two months until the Queen and the Outlaw will start something like a relationship.

Regina smiles a little because yes, Robin would suit this role very well but he would never agree to help her. But she will ask him, of course she will.

"Perhaps," She finally answers shrugging her shoulders.

She then turns back to Snow, whose eyes are wide opened and she's obviously waiting for information but Regina just smiles a small smile and then it disappears from her face, her eyes lose their light and darken with hurt again.

Regina doesn't even need to say anything, Snow gets the hint: she doesn't want to talk anymore. And Snow respects her space, so the rest of the way ladies walk in silence.

Regina is deep in her thoughts again but this time Henry isn't the only thing on her mind. There's this new agreement which seems so crazy and stupid but so unique at the same time. Henry would love it. He would find it funny, very funny, and would give it a silly name and he would be more than willing to help Regina.

But he's not here. He's away, in another land, with no memory of her.

Her heart clenches as a small tear runs down Regina's cheek but she quickly wipes it away before faking another smile.

Once they're back in the castle and Snow goes to talk with Charming, Regina rushes to see Robin. She's sure that Snow or Charming, or both of them will definitely ask Robin about his relationship with the Queen and Robin would ruin everything because he has no idea about it at all.

She knocks on his chambers' door one time – usually she never knocks because it's her castle and she's the Queen, she can walk wherever she wants but this time she has to be nice if she wants him to agree to her crazy agreement, so she tries – but gets no answer. She should probably knock one more time but instead she opens the door and walks in.

The chambers are empty. It's a surprise that Robin's not there but Roland's not there as well, so they're probably together in the woods having fun or whatever they like to do together.

It's almost dinner time, he should come back soon anyway, she thinks, so she decides to wait for him in his chambers.

Turning on her hell, she looks around his chambers. He doesn't have many things, she notes, but then her eyes catch dirty clothes on the floor - he's really a savage man - and she rolls her eyes.

She then walks to the bed and smiles when she sees a monkey toy which she gave to Roland a few weeks ago laying in the middle of the bed. She likes the boy a lot, and he seems to like her too, and she has to admit that sometimes, when she feels really really bad, the boy helps her to forget about the cutting pain in her chest.

She turns to the nightstand and finds a small green medallion laying there. It's not expensive or very beautiful but it's obviously important if he has it on his nightstand.

She picks it up to take a closer look but-.

"What are you doing here?" The voice startles her and the medallion drops from her hands.

She quickly picks it up and places it in its previous place before turning around and apologizing.

"I'm sorr-" She says as she faces Robin but then gasps in shock when she finds him standing with just a towel wrapped around his waist. For a moment it reminds her of Storybrooke, of another land where people used to do things like that but then she shakes her head, covers her eyes with her hands and says, "Do you have a habit of walking around naked?"

"Well, it's my chambers, I can do whatever I want,"

She nods her head because yes, he's right, she's the intruder here, so she turns around and says, "Dress up, we need to talk,"

She hears Robin laugh behind her but she concentrates on the wall, she doesn't want to see his half-naked body again. Once again, she curses herself for coming here, he won't agree anyway, she's just wasting her time but she's already there, she has to ask him.

"Okay, we can talk now," Robin says after a moment making her turn around and face him again. "So, what does the Queen need?"

"I need your help," She announces and Robin raises an eyebrow at her – she has never asked his help, damn, she has never asked anyone to help her. Regina wants to roll her eyes but she's the one asking for help, she needs to be polite or at least tries to be so she inhales and continues, "I need you to pretend that you're my boyfriend,"

Robin looks at her but then he starts laughing because it's ridiculous. Evil Queen wants him to be her boyfriend? He laughs again, louder this time, but then his eyes meet hers and the look she's giving to him makes him stop completely. She's serious, deadly serious. If the looks could kill, he would be dead by now.

"What?" He asks looking at her in disbelief.

"I won't tell you twice," She groans and puts her hands in her hair, desperately. She really didn't need to come here, it was a stupid thing to do.

But now Robin's looking seriously at her. He probably is considering the positive and negative sides of the deal, and she should've done it too but it's already too late, isn't it? S

"And what do I get out of this?" He asks, the smirk is back on his face.

It's such a simple question but she doesn't find the answer. She thinks and thinks and thinks but nothing seems right. She could offer him security or money but he wouldn't take it, so she just shrugs and says, "You'd help me a lot,"

It seems to suit him because he nods his head but then that annoying smirk is on his face again.

"Will I be able to kiss you?" He asks and she rises her hand up but he catches it before she can slap him. She looks at him again, her eyes piercing through him.

"No," She hisses because never in her life she would let a thief kiss her. Nope, not gonna happen.

"Then I don't agree." He says making her frown.

She looks at him for a moment but then waves her hand in a dismissive way and turns around to leave, it was such a stupid idea, damn, why was she so stupid and thought that he'd agree, but he grabs her by the wrist again and stops her.

"I'm kidding," He pulls her hand making her turn around and face him again. She's surprised when she meets his face again, the smirk is changed by a small smile which looks sincere. "Of course, I agree," he says to her and she smiles a little.

They agree to do it for six months, she thinks that such period will be enough to convince Snow and others that she has moved on and there's no need to worry about her anymore, check up on her every single hour.

And so the farce begins.

"I hear steps," Robin announces to Regina on their way to the hall where they're having a meeting with others about Zelena and her deadly threats the next morning. Robin pulls Regina's hand until they're standing nose to nose making her eyes widen and she's shaking her heads because he can't do it but his hand in already in her hair and he's pulling her closer.

And then he kisses her. It's not a simple peck as she's hoped, he really kisses her. Regina's first instinct is to push him away, to curse him and turn him into a frog or other awful thing but then there's a gasp which stops her. She even kisses him back, letting one of her hands wrap around his neck.

Robin pulls away from Regina and his hand travels down from her hair to her side. Her eyes open slowly and she finds him smirking again, she almost raises her hand to slap him but stops herself and manages a small tight smile before turning to Snow, who's standing beside them.

"So you two are really together," Snow asks but it sounds more like a statement which Robin answers with a grin, pulling Regina even closer. Snow grins then looking at the two of them because she's happy, Regina needs someone like Robin, someone, who could tease her and not be afraid of her threats, but then her grin disappears and she looks at them, shaking her head, "But you know, there are kids in the castle," Snow says and Robin nods his head because Snow is right, Roland can find them and it would be really difficult to explain him what they were doing.

"We'll be more careful next time," Robin says and turns to Regina sending her a smile. She wants to push him away again, tell him there won't be a next time, there won't be anything, it's over between them but Snow is looking at them with adoration in her eyes, so Regina just smiles back and turns to Snow.

If it means that she will get her freedom back, she can suffer for a bit.

One night, when Regina is laying in bed, thinking about Henry as always, the door creak snaps her out of the thoughts.

She hears steps but doesn't even bother to look up who come to see her at such late time without knocking. It's obviously Snow.

Regina pulls the blanket over her head (she knows she's acting like a child) and hopes that Snow will leave her alone without a long and annoying speech about faith.

But then suddenly the bed shifts and Regina gasps in surprise, almost jumps from the bed, and lifts her wrist in the air for magic use, the spell already on her lips but then in the dark she manages make out that it's ….Robin Hood. Her jaw drops open as she stares at him but he doesn't seem to mind her reaction because he's pulling a blanket over himself and laying on her bed.

"What are you doing here?" She shout-whispers at him as her wrist which was just a few moments ago was sparkling with magic falls down on her chest as she inhales, exhales and inhales again and then does it for a few more times before she calms down completely.

"Well, since I'm your boyfriend, so I thought it would be nice to sleep with my girlfriend," he says as if it's not a bit deal.

"What? No" She exclaims before she slaps him on the shoulder. A sharp sound echoes in the room as her palm meets his bare shoulder making Regina almost instantly move away. If his shoulder is bare, it means he's shirtless. Oh God, suddenly she feels so happy that it's dark in the room.

She shakes her head at him, she's not sure he can see it through the dark but she does it anyway, and then tries to pull the blanket away from him, to push him out of the bed but he tugs her hand and she collapses on his chest.

She tries to move away from him but he wraps his arm around her waist, keeping her close to him. She squirms but he quickly pulls the blanket over them and whispers in her ear, "Shh, someone is coming,"

And then the door creaks again and Regina freezes, stops fighting completely, she even lays her head on his shoulder, her breath stuck in her throat.

The room lights up by the candlelight and then there's a familiar gasp.

Snow found them.

Good. Very good.

The candle almost drops from Snow's hands as Regina turns over her shoulder looking at Snow, trying to act confused.

"What are you doing here?" She asks, her voice hoarse.

"I… I'm sorry I didn't know you have company," Snow rushes the words out and then she turns around and walks out of the room and shutting the door behind herself without even saying a 'good night'.

Regina looks at the door confused for a moment because it's strange, usually Snow is brave and a man is Regina's bed shouldn't bother her at all but then it hits her like a wrecking ball. She's laying on Robin's chest, her breathing is harsh and laboured, her voice hoarse from shouting.

Snow thinks they are having sex.

And suddenly Regina starts laughing.

Really laughing.

She pulls away from Robin and curls up into a ball on the bed as the tears of laughter start streaming down her face. The whole room is filled with her laugh and Robin looks at her inquired but then she manages to say, "She thinks we're having sex," and Robin joins her laughing.

They stay like that for a few minutes, laughing together, but then Regina stops, the smile disappears from her face and she looks at him serious.

"Get out of my bed," She says and pushes him on the shoulder but he doesn't even more an inch.

"I think I deserve a night in a Queen's bed, don't I?" He asks raising an eyebrow at her, making her groan in anger.

It's her agreement, her fake relationship, her deal but Robin is the one setting the rules, it seems. And it annoys her a lot but as long as he's helping, she can suffer for a bit. So with a deep calming exhale, she pulls a blanket from him, covers herself with it and inhales.

"You sleep in your side and don't even try to touch me," She hisses the words out before rolling over on the side turning her back to him.

He stays still for a moment but then he pulls the blanket away from her just enough to cover himself and lies back down. He watches her, even though she's facing away from him, it's enough for him, he could watch her sleeping figure all night, he really would but sleep wins and his eyes close unwillingly.

Snow doesn't come to check up on her the next morning.

Regina is sitting in her chambers with her diary opened in front of her – she started writing it again a while ago – but this time she's not writing. She's thinking.

Two months have passed since she started a fake relationship with Robin and this thing has been haunting her for days now, this new feeling, this new side of her which is showing up more and more with each passing day.

Since the day she started her agreement with Robin Hood everything's changed. The more time she spends with him, the better she feels. His sassiness and deadly jokes makes her feel alive again, and for a few moments, for a few nanoseconds, she feels herself again.

Of course, she still cries herself to sleep almost every single night and her nightmares haven't got any better but she smiles more during a day and sometimes she even laughs, and it's sincere, she doesn't need to fake it.

She feels better. She doesn't want to kill every single person in the castle anymore, and her so called depression seems to get better as well. She doesn't think of Henry as much as she used to, of course, he's still always on her mind but at least the thought of him doesn't make her cry anymore.

And she realizes that they don't need to pretend anymore. Snow hasn't come since that night when she's found them together in bed and she finally got her freedom back but somehow Regina likes having him around because with him she doesn't have time to be sad and let those thoughts sink into her head.

So she decides that it wouldn't hurt if they pretend for a little bit longer than needed…

"Six months are over," Robin announces as he enters Regina's chambers one morning.

She turns around and looks at him confused for a moment, she's forgotten about the agreement, about six months, because time with Robin flew unnoticed, but then she recovers and looks at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Were you counting days?" She asks and Robin nods his head but there's a smirk on his face and she laughs at him before becoming serious again. "Yes," She agrees to his previous statement and takes a step closer to him. "But it doesn't mean this," She waves her hand between them, "has to end between us,"

"Oh," He laughs a little. "Snow wasn't checking up on you since that night, right?" He asks. Regina could lie but there are no lies between them anymore because this uncertain thing is becoming serious between them so she nods her head answering his question. Robin smirks again and she shakes her head disapprovingly but he asks anyway, "So, you like me around?"

She slaps him on the shoulder and rolls her eyes because she won't admit it to him, not now anyway. She takes a deep breath and then says something sincere, "I just don't think about sad things when you're around,"

He nods his head with a small smile playing on his lips. They stay in silence for a while, just looking into each other's eyes and holding each other's hand until Regina leans over just a little bit and suggests, "Would you agree to pretend a little bit longer?"

Robin's surprised for a moment but he recovers quickly and grins again. "Perhaps we don't need to pretend anymore?" He asks leaning over so their lips are almost touching. His arms find their way around her waist and he's pulling her close.

She looks into his eyes, smiles a little and then leans over, inhales and says, "perhaps," before she presses her lips to his.

And who would have thought that this crazy fake relationship could help them find love and happiness?

Feedback is always appreciated!


	3. Chapter 3

**Day 3 - Lost Together.**

 **Regal Believer and Dimples Queen!**

They are back to the Enchanted Forest but this time all of them – with Henry and Emma. Another curse, another fight is in a way but this time Regina seems much calmer because she has Henry by her side, Robin and Roland as well. Also, she has to admit that she's quite happy that Emma's with them because since she is a new dark one, she's much powerful than before – not that she wasn't powerful back then but now she's very powerful – and now they both can beat almost anything.

So now, this new enemy doesn't seem so dangerous.

Henry is more than excited to be in the Enchanted Forest. For him everything is interesting and he wants to see everything in this land and of course, Regina is more than eager to show him. And since he's older now – he's fifteen – she can tell him about the things she tried to hide before. One day she even showed him stables where Daniel was killed.

They have almost been everywhere and the next thing Henry wanted to see was Sherwood forest. Robin offered to show it because he had lived there for years and can walk through it with closed eyes, he said so, and after hours of convincing Regina finally agreed and now they're ready for the trip – all dressed up with bags and smiles on their faces.

Except Regina.

"Mom," Henry knocks to the door of her bedchambers but gets no answer. She's late for more than 10 minutes already and he decided to check-up on her.

He waits for a while, a long while until the door finally opens and the Queen walks out. Henry can't help but laugh when he sees his mother in one of her dresses from 'Evil' days. He's not used to see her like that, all dressed up and with black eye-shadows, eyelainer and all that other stuff, with her long hair and black nails. She looks like completely different person, but when she smiles, she's still the same Regina, his mother, just a little bit more rafinied with the posture of the Queen.

"Shut up," She manages to say before Henry gets a chance to comment her appearance. He nods his head and they walk to Robin and Roland laughing.

"Finally," Robin groans as they appears making Regina roll her eyes. He has had to get used to her being late already but turns out that he hasn't yet.

Regina says nothing to him, just smiles to Roland, who seems more excited than Henry, takes his hand and then their little family make their way out of the castle.

The way is very long, so they stop for a few times to eat something or just take a break but after hours of walking, they reach their destination – Sherwood Forest.

"We had a house in this forest," Roland exclaims and claps his palms before he looks up at his dad and asks, "Can we show them?"

Robin doubts for a moment, perhaps the house isn't standing there anymore, many years have passed since they lived there, but they're in the forest anyway, so they can look for it. He nods his head in agreement and leads the way.

They walk for a few hours through the woods, unfamiliar places and Henry seems to be very interested in every single thing, he explores everything he sees around. Regina can't help the smile which forms on her face, at least for one of them this trip is fun.

Roland, who is walking behind Regina, sighs almost with every step. He has complained about his aching legs a few hours ago, when they were at the beginning of the Sherwood Forest. Regina would carry him but she's tired herself, she barely stands on her feet.

This walk through the woods gives nothing to them and just then Regina realizes that they're lost. Robin's been telling stories about this place since they reached it but he's silent for a while now and when he turns around, he seems worried, very worried actually.

Regina stops walking and Roland bumps into her. Henry and Robin turns to them and Regina crosses her arms over her chest, "My dear Robin of Lockley," She starts making boys chuckle because if she's calling him that, it means he's in trouble. "Do you know where we are?" She asks and Robin's eyes widen.

He looks at her then, looks at Roland and Henry but then his gaze comes back to Regina. She's giving him a look, a warning one but then the look is changed by a smirk because she knows the answer, he doesn't even need to say it aloud.

He knows she'll tease him for it for the rest of his life, he will suffer from her sassiness but he doesn't regret it a bit because this trip was-is fun, and they haven't shared many trips like that.

"I can walk through the Sherwood forest with closed eyes" Regina quotes him and both boys laugh again as Robin rolls his eys. Here they go.

"So what are we going to do now?" It's Henry who asks, he's no longer smiling. He doesn't seem very happy about this lost, and it's understandable because it's his first time in this forest but Regina wraps her arm around his shoulders as if to tell him that it's alright.

"We're going to go the same way we came here and we will eventually find the end of the forest," Robin announces after a moment of silence in his cofident voice.

"Or not," Regina smirks and Robin rolls his eyes at her.

"Let's go," Robin ignores her and they start walking again.

And they walk and walk until they all are too tired to take a step any further. But they're still lost in the middle of the Sherwood sits down on the ground with another sigh and it doesn't take a minute until Henry joins him. Regina turns to Robin and now he looks at her worriedly, it's not funny anymore.

What if their boys have to sleep in the dangerous forest because of him?

Robin turns to Regina, who's still smirking, and wonders why she isn't worried but perhaps she is, she just doesn't let them know because it would be a disaster then.

"Okay, guys, we're officially lost," Robin finally states and both boys frown. Tired expressions on boys faces are changed by the worried ones now and Robin feels even worse because of this.

Regina groans and sits down beside the boys, the smirk gone from her face. She is worried or upset, Robin's not sure, but obviously she's not happy about all this. From the very beginning she wasn't very enthusiastic about this trip and now they got lost. And truth be told, one part of Robin doesn't want to get home because once they're back, she's definitely going to shout on him and it's obvoious that Henry will never be able to go somewhere with him again.

But what's done, that's done. He needs to find a way out of this situation.

"Thank you, Robin," Regina says sarcastically as she looks around the place where they are. They are surrounded by the woods, tall grass and dark sky. "So what are we going to do now?" She asks, her voice strong but it's obvious that she's worried too now.

"Well, we can make a campsite and rest for a while and then, once Sun is up in the sky, we should walk again and I'm sure in the end we'll find our way back," Robin suggests.

Regina sees how Henry's eyes widen – he wanted to see this forest but sleeping in it wasn't a part of his plan, but they don't have a option, and he's also scared because he had read the fairytales and he knows that forest isn't the best way to spend the night. So she moves closer to him and wraps an arm around him. It doesn't even take a moment until Roland cuddles into her other side. They are tired, they want to go home. This trip is not funny anymore.

"I'm sorry, guys, okay?" Robin says as he sits down in front of them. He's worried as well but he has to act brave because it's his fault. At least one of them has to stay strong, "We'll find the way out,"

"Or not,"

Robin gives Regina a look – she should be helping, not making the situation even worse – but Regina just shrugs, rests her head against Henry's shoulder and sighs.

"I don't want to sleep here," Roland whines as he looks up at Regina.

"Me too, buddy, but your papa got us lost," Regina explains and Robin sends her another look.

"Mom," It's Henry who warns her but she looks at her with wide eyes and shrugs.

"It's true. He's the one to blame,"

"Regina," Robin says, his voice louder than usually. "I'm sorry, okay? Yes, I got us lost, yes, I'm the one to blame but can you, please, stop it? You should be helping," With every word his voice is becoing more and more desperate.

And then she grins widely, stands up and looks at Robin who's standing there dumbfounded. He knows Regina is crazy, he knew it all the time, but this is not understandable. There's nothing to be happy about and she acts like it's such a funny game.

And then she moves her wrist in the air and there are purple smoke around them and then they're not in the forest anymore. They're standing in front of the castle.

Henry looks at his mother with wide eyes and then gasps before hugging her tightly as if thanking her. In a moment, Roland is hugging her too as tightly as he can. His 'Gina is a hero, no doubt.

They pull away and find Robin standing there, not moving, just looking at Regina with something they can't understand.

"What?" Regina asks and chuckles.

"You could do it all the time," He hisses as he takes a few steps closer to her. "You knew there was nothing to worry about and you didn't tell me. You-" He wants to say something else but he's already close enough, so he grabs her hand, pulls her closer and kisses her (it's the best way to wipe that smirk off of her face).

The kids immediately _eww_ and turn around to go to the castle because there are other things they would do much more enjoyable than watch their parents kissing.

Regina smiles into the kiss when she hears the boys walk away and then wraps her arms around Robin's neck, deepening the kiss.

After several long kisses, Regina and Robin pull away breathless. Their eyes meet and then they both start to laugh because damn, her idea was good. Of course, how could Robin be so stupid and forget about her magic?

"You don't play fair," He says after a moment before he leans over until their noses are touching.

"I never do," She whispers and then kisses him again.

 **Feedback is always appreciated!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Day 4: The Nanny AU.**

 **Dimples Queen!**

Robin paces back and forth in his living room, nervously scratching his head. He has a date in an hour, and he's really excited about it because this new woman in his life has him very interested and it's his first date after _her_ but there is a huge problem: his friend, Little John, who had to look after Roland had an accident and now he can no longer take care of the boy.

And he can't leave Roland alone but he also can't take him on the date.

He thinks about all his other friends, but they obviously wouldn't take a good care of his son.

Well, there is one friend – he's not sure if he can still call that person a friend - one woman actually, who would be capable to look after Roland. But he's not sure if this woman, Regina Mills, would agree to do such a thing after what has happened between them, they haven't talked after that.

But perhaps she would agree look after Roland anyway, she always adored him.

Robin glances at the clock on the wall and groans because he doesn't have more time to think, he's already running late and delay on the first date isn't the best idea.

Regina's sitting in her living room with a book in her hands but she's not reading. She's thinking about how lonely her evening will be; Henry is out with Emma and Hook and he won't be back until tomorrow evening, so it means she's all alone by herself. Of course, Charmings volunteered to spend some time with her but she waved her hand in a dismissive way and said that she's a big girl, she doesn't need someone to look after her.

Sighing she tries to concentrate on the book she's reading but then there's a knock on the door and she immediately drops the book on the couch and rushes to the door. Perhaps Henry changed his mind and decided to come home?

She opens the door widely with a huge smile on her face but there is not Henry… It's Robin Hood and Roland.

Her eyes widen in surprise and confusion when she blinks for a few times just to make sure she's not dreaming. What are they doing here?

"Hi," Robin breaks a silence and offers her a small smile.

"Hi?" Regina replies, her voice shaking just a little bit. She was sure that after what has happened between them, she will never see him again but here he is; standing in her doorway with his cute little boy beside him. "What are you doing here?"

"I… I wanted to ask you… .can you look after Roland this evening? I have a … a meeting and Little John can't look after him, and I have no one else to ask and… yeah," He explains, hesitatingly, making Regina let out a humourless chuckle. He has to be kidding. They haven't talked for… six months probably and now he shows up as if nothing has happened. This man is crazy, no doubt.

But then she looks down at Roland and the boy is grinning at her, the dimples in his cheeks make her knees go weak as always. She has missed him a lot, truth be told she would like to spend time with him because she was close with him, there was a time when she thought about him as a son. But despite all that, she's still not sure if she should agree.

She looks back at Robin for a moment and finds him pleading her with his eyes. She rolls her eyes at him but then looks back at Roland, who is still smiling at her that cute heart-warming smile. Damn, she can't say no to this dimpled boy.

She then inhales and finally says, "Okay,"

Robin smiles a little, lets go of Roland's hand and the boy immediately runs to Regina and hugs her leg tightly. She smiles as she kneels to pick him up and then stands back up to look at Robin.

"Be a good boy, Roland, and listen to Regina, I will be back soon, buddy," Robin states to Roland and the boy eagerly nods his head. Then he turns to Regina and says, "Thank you, milady, you saved my day,"

"It's nothing," She smiles a little too and hugs Roland tighter, making the boy giggle.

"No, it means a lot, Regina," Robin says seriously and she nods with a small smile still on her face.

They say their goodbyes then because Robin is already late and then he disappears from her threshold. Regina closes the door and carries Roland to the living room, puts him down on the floor and the boy almost immediately jumps on the couch, makes himself comfortable and looks at her again with that smile.

He still feels like home here.

"I missed you," Roland announces.

"Oh, I missed you too, Roland," Regina says as she sits down beside him on the couch. Roland immediately moves closer to her until he can snuggle to her.

"I missed Henry too,"

"I'm sure Henry missed you as well but he's with his other mom tonight." She explains and Roland nods his head in understanding, making Regina laugh a little. His cuteness has no end. She shakes her head to herself smiling and then asks, "So what do you want to do?"

"Can we make an apple pie? The one we made for Christmas" Roland asks and his eyes shine with excitement.

"Of course we can," She agrees and laughs a little when she recalls the last time they made that pie. She had to clean kitchen for hours after that and since that day Henry and Roland aren't allowed to cook when they're alone.

Roland looks at her and giggles too, he recalls this event as well but then Regina takes his little hand and they both walk to the kitchen.

Roland makes himself comfortable on the chair in the kitchen, rolls up his sleeves as Regina takes the ingredients from the fridge. She puts an empty bowl on the table and Roland takes an egg immediately, ready to cook.

It doesn't take an hour and the pie is in the oven. Both Roland and Regina clean the kitchen, they really did make a mess as always, and once the kitchen is clean, they walk back to the living room.

They sit back down on the couch and Regina turns on the TV, a cartoon channel Roland likes so much. The boy snuggles to her side again and sighs.

"I'll tell you a secret, but you can't tell it to anyone," Roland says after a while of silence. Regina nods her head intrigued and then he continues, "I don't like papa's new girlfriend. I like you more,"

Robin has a new girlfriend? Did he?.. Her heart aches as she closes her eyes tightly for a moment, trying to keep her emotions under control. They broke up six months ago, what has she expected? Of course, he has to move on.

But one part of her still hoped. Deep down she still thought that Robin would wait for her… You see, they have been dating for a few years, have even started living together but when things got more and more serious, Robin proposed to her. And that was it.

She had managed to break her wall for him and let him in, but marriage was still the thing that scared her the most. She loved him, he was her everything, but she couldn't agree, not yet. So she shook her head and ran away.

She stayed in her vault for a few days after that and when she finally found strength to see him and explain everything to him, he wasn't at her home anymore. He had collected all his things and left with Roland.

Since then they haven't talked. She hasn't even explained to him why she ran away.

And if things between this new girlfriend and Robin are serious, Regina has lost her chance completely, deep down she still hoped that once she explains everything to him, he will give her another chance. But it seems she's already too late, isn't she?

But she can't blame Robin, she is the one, who ran away without saying a word.

Regina recovers then, blinks away the tears and looks down at Roland, smiles and asks, "And why don't you like her?"

"Her hair is not beautiful," Roland shrugs and Regina chuckles but then she's deep in her thought again.

She's lost Robin. That's it.

But she loves him. She is ready to take that next step now, she's not afraid of it anymore because during these lonely months without him she realized that he's everything she's ever wanted and there's no need to be afraid.

And now she has to fight for him or at least tell him why she ran away that day.

"I want to sleep, 'Gina," Roland's voice snaps her out of her thoughts and she nods immediately giving him a smile. She takes his hand and they both walk upstairs to Henry's room, the room, where he used to stay when he and Robin were living with her.

Roland's already sleeping upstairs when Robin comes back. He knocks gently on the door and it doesn't take a minute until Regina opens the door and lets him in. She has been waiting for him for a while now.

"How was your evening?" She asks politely once he's inside although she's not interested about his date at all.

Robin smiles and says that it was good, very good actually. Regina nods and smiles as well although she feels jealous, he's having a good time while she's still deeply in love with him, suffering, but on the other hand she can't blame him, it's her fault, after all.

"Where's Roland?" He asks as they walk into the empty living room.

"He's sleeping upstairs," She replies quietly before taking a deep breath in.

She turns around to face Robin (he has been walking behind her) and suddenly they're so close, it would take just one step and they could kiss. She can't help but look at his lips, those lips she missed so much but then she looks up into his deep blue eyes and she can't stop herself from taking that one needed step which makes their noses touch.

She ignores her gut and kisses him just like the first time. She presses her lips tightly against his and wraps her arms around his neck to pull him even closer.

He doesn't hesitate, he kisses back immediately, his arms find their way around her waist and he's pulling her closer as well.

It's been too long since they kissed like that, too long since they've been this close.

"I love you," She whispers when they break the kiss to take a breath and for the first time in years these words leave her mouth so easily, she doesn't feel scared anymore even if the world will come crashing down.

Robin stares at her with wide eyes and Regina looks down, feeling guilty that she waited so long, that it has taken her to go through so much pain, even a break up, and just now she's finally able to admit her true feelings to him.

She understands that perhaps Robin doesn't want to be with her anymore and it's understandable because she's pushed him away and he has all the rights to move on, but still her heart clenches as she looks into his wide eyes.

They stare into each other's eyes for a moment but then she shakes her head to herself and pulls away from him, takes a step back because he hasn't said anything, he's just staring at her and it's enough to answer her unspoken question. She's lost her chance.

"You should take Roland and go home," She whispers turning around and takes a deep breath trying to stay calm. She can't cry in front of him, she won't, she can't show him how vulnerable he can make her.

But Robin grabs her hand and turns her around to face him again and once she's looking at him, he leans over and kisses her again. She's surprised for a moment but then she recovers and kisses him back and this time the kiss is different, there's something more, more emotions, more passion, more love, pain perhaps, she doesn't quite understand it herself.

His hands find their way into her hair and he pulls her even closer and kisses her like there's no tomorrow. It makes her knees go weak, she lets a quiet moan out. She doesn't remember the last time he kissed her like that.

Eventually they pull away, both breathless but both with smiles on their faces.

"I love you, too," Robin whispers looking deep into her eyes and then he leans over again, their lips are almost touching again. Regina smiles widely, it's not the first time he says it, but it's the first time he says it after so long and it's such a relief to know that his feeling hasn't changed.

"I'm so sorry I waited so long, Robin," She apologizes but Robin nods understanding, a small smile on his face. He knows her, knows her walls and how tall and hard they are, it's hard to break them after so many years of being alone, of being scared, feeling nothing. "I should've said it much-"

But he's heard enough of her apologies, so he cuts her off with a kiss, a sweet and soft kiss which is enough to make her stops talking. She smiles a little and then every thought leave her mind, she feels light and peaceful, there are just she and he, nothing more.

They're taking their second chance and this time, she's ready for it.

A brown haired boy is standing at the top of the stairs, pressing a teddy bear to his chest when a small smile spreads across his face. He can see his Papa kissing his 'Gina, and yes, he's still little, they think he doesn't understand, but he does and he know that it means that there are going to be fights now, tears and screams, perhaps even a broken plates but in the end, they are going to be happy together again.

Just as he always wanted.

 **Feedback is always appreciated! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Day 5: Adoption Day**

It's midnight. The moon is high in the sky and it's full this night, so it's no surprise Regina's not sleeping, during the full moon it's always difficult for her to fall asleep.

But today there is another reason why she can't fall asleep. It's her thoughts which torture her, thoughts about the little girl who has become a member of their little family very unexpectedly.

That day Regina came home from work tired, very tired, it was a hard week and it finally was Friday, it was the day when Henry's week with her started, and all she wanted to do was go home and spend some time with her boys, all of them, but once she entered the house, she was very surprised because in her living room, on the couch a small girl was sitting. Her boys were with her and they immediately explained who the girl was and how she ended up in her house.

It turned out that the girl was thrown here through the portal from the Enchanted Forest and that she was an orphan. Of course, at first Regina wasn't very happy about all this situation, she was sure that the girl was another evil, that she will destroy their lives but Henry and Roland managed to convince her to let the girl stay. One day, they said.

And it's one of the best decisions she has ever made.

But one day turned into days and Regina didn't even feel how she got attached to Rapunzel, that's the mysterious girl's name. The little girl was sweet and innocence and oh so very cute, there were no possibility someone could dislike her.

So days turned into weeks, weeks into months and now it's already one year since Rapunzel started living with them. One year since their life has changed completely.

It's no surprise Robin is attached to Rapunzel just as much as she is. He's more than happy to have a girl in their house with boys, he likes to spend time with her, he likes to teach her things and he's more than happy to see how Roland and Henry adore her (sometimes the boys even call her a little sister).

Rapunzel is a member of their family now.

And tonight, Regina can't drop the idea of adoption out of her mind. Of course, it wouldn't change a thing because now Rapunzel is her daughter, their daughter, and no one can change that but what, if someone decides to take her away from them? Because of course they could, she's not their officially.

She can't lose her.

Sighing Regina sits up in the bed and grabs the robe from the end of the bed, puts in on and quietly, on her tiptoes, walks out of the room (Robin is a light sleeper, she needs to be very quiet if she wants to escape unnoticed).

She closes the door behind herself and sighs before walking to the other end of the house where their kids are sleeping or at least should be. The door of Henry's room is slightly opened and TV can be heard from it, he probably forgot to turn it off as always, so Regina pushes the door a little and steps into the room.

She gasps in surprise when she finds all three of her children laying in small Henry's bed, snuggled to each other, sleeping peacefully. She smiles and walks further into the room to put a blanket on them, because they're still in their clothes and it's obvious they haven't planned to sleep together but it's not the first time they all sleep like that, in a bed too small for the three of them, but she can't blame them because Roland and Rapunzel miss Henry while he's at Emma's.

She kisses their foreheads then and turns off the TV before walking out of the room and closing the door quietly behind herself.

Regina comes back into the bedroom and finds Robin still sleeping peacefully. She smiles a little – she didn't wake him up - and then lies on the bed, pulls the blanket over herself again, rolls over on the side but her arm accidentally hits Robin.

It doesn't even take a second until Robin's eyes are opened and he's leaning on his elbow, looking around, trying to find out what's happening. Is someone trying to kill them again?

But then he finds Regina's eyes illuminated by the moonlight and sighs in relief before he collapses back on the bed with a palm on his forehead. No one is trying to kill them, that's good.

It takes a moment until he leans on the elbow again and looks into her eyes, studying her face for a second, sleep forgotten, trying to understand what's on her mind, but then he asks, "Why are you not sleeping?"

She wants to say that she just woke up and that she was thirsty, but she doesn't want to lie to him, she has promised it a while ago, to tell him the truth no matter how hard it may be. And also, he knows her too well, he would definitely know she's lying, so she just shrugs and lays on her back, pulling the blanket to her neck.

"What's on your mind?" He asks again, stretching his hand to touch her cheek.

She has to sigh, she's not sure if she should tell him about her thoughts, about adoption. Perhaps it's silly. What, if he doesn't want to do that? What, if he's not as enthusiastic about this thing as she is?

But it's her Robin. His heart is pure and good, and he loves Rapunzel as much as she, he would never oppose to something like that. After all, it wouldn't be a first time they're talking about adoption – they have planned to adopt a child before Rapunzel showed up because the boys are growing up too quickly, and also, they wanted another child, a child they would adopt together.

So she looks into his eyes, inhales, exhales, inhales again and speaks, "I thought that maybe… just maybe we could adopt Rapunzel? You know, she's already living with us, she's our family, and someone can take her away because she's not legally ours and we wanted to adopt before and-"

Robin cuts her off with a sweet kiss because she's obviously overthinking it, and he doesn't like when she does it, and also there's no need to overthink such a thing because he would always agree as long as it makes her happy. And it obviously does.

She pulls away from the kiss and opens her mouth to continue, but Robin puts his finger on her lips before she can speak.

"Of course, Regina, of course we can adopt her. I'd love that," He says and she blinks for a few times, processes what he's said and then realization hits her. He agreed. He wants it as much as she does and it's such a relief to her.

She smiles widely then and moves closer to him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, trying so hard to stop the tears because she's Regina Mills and Regina Mills is not a weepier, but the tears are running down her cheeks and she doesn't bother anymore, she can be weak one time.

It takes a moment or two until she manages to stop the tears but even then she doesn't pull away. She holds Robin close because God knows she wouldn't be this happy without him. She wouldn't be happy at all, if not him.

Robin knows she's overthinking again, so he leaves a small kiss on her shoulder and it gets her attention, she pulls away a little and looks at him with that heart-warming smile.

"We can sign the papers in the morning," She suddenly says, pulling away from him completely and sitting up. "And we'll give her Mills-Lockley name and we will buy her something because it's such a special day for her and us and oh my God, then she's going to stay with us forever, it will be real,"

Robin laughs quietly and it receives him a glare but then she chuckles too, it's ridiculous. She's acting like a child in a candy store but in these moments, when she's all excited and kinda crazy, Robin realizes just how much he loves her for that, for that childish side under the evil mask.

"We will do everything tomorrow," He says pulling her closer again, "But now we need to sleep," He adds and she nods because yes, he's right, she has work tomorrow and adoption to do, she needs rest and he needs it as well, so she cuddles into his side, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I love you, Robin Hood," She whispers and her eyes closes, finally sleep is coming to her.

"I love you too, but we really need to sleep," He says back and his eyes close as well.

It doesn't even take a minute until Robin's sleeping but Regina was wrong when she thought, sleep was coming. Now there is another thought in her mind – they need to buy a new house, this one is too small for them, she thinks. Of course, there are plenty rooms in the house but they should buy a new house anyway and make a playground for the kids in the yard.

"Robin," She calls quietly but gets no response and it's unexpected, so she calls again, this time a little louder, "Robin?"

"Mm?"

"We need to buy a new house," She whispers and he groans, his hand smashes on his face as he takes a deep breath – she drives him crazy sometimes, she really does - but before he can say anything, Regina's cuddling into his side again and her head is back on his shoulder.

And this time, she's the first who falls asleep with a huge grin on her face.

 **Feedback is always appreciated! :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Day 6: Teach me

Regina finishes putting dishes into the dishwasher when she hears a familiar, pleasing sound from the living room. It's guitar music, one of her favourite sounds at the moment and it's quite the usual sound in her house these days.

She smiles widely to herself as she puts the last plate into the washer and walks to the living room where, she supposes, her husband is playing (Henry is out with Roland, so who else could play?)

And who would have thought that a thief would like to play a guitar? Well, thanks to Henry and his crazy idea to create a rock band with Killian, David and Robin, and now Robin is playing it almost every single moment he can. And no one can deny it: he's quite a good player and singer as well.

She stops at the doorway and leans against the door frame, closes her eyes for a moment, lets herself drown into these amazing sounds of the guitar. Robin's looking away; he doesn't see her, so she can secretly listen to his sweet voice for a while.

She opens her eyes and watches him, her heart beating faster and faster as she listens to him singing one of those romantic songs he wrote for her (he writes songs too, that's unbelievable but true). But then he suddenly stops and turns around, he felt a presence in the room, so their eyes meet and he gives her a look with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you watching me again?" He asks as she walks closer to him and sits on the couch beside him.

She looks at him for a moment with a small smile but then completely ignoring his question (the answer is obvious), she says, "Teach me,"

Robin frowns a little, confusion written all over his face. When Henry has asked her to join the band and play a guitar with them, she's told that she's too old for that and also it's not her level, a Queen doesn't play in a rock band in the garage but now she realizes that age is just a number and she really wants to play with them in that stupid band because it's funny. Even Emma joined them.

"You mean, play the guitar?" Robin asks confused as he stares at her with wide eyes.

"Yes," She rolls her eyes, a small pout on her face but she's blushing just a little bit because his reaction is not what she expected.

"Oh," He breathes out but then leans over and smirks, "But how will you pay for your lessons?"

She smacks him on the shoulder and shakes her head but then leans over as well and whispers, "Well, I know such a good way to pay," She rests her hand on his thigh making his breath hitch in his throat, "But we will talk about the payment later, now teach me," She moves away from him leaving him with a small pout on his lips but then he nods his head in agreement.

He stands up and tells her to sit down comfortably on the couch and when she settles, he puts his brown guitar on her right thigh and moves her left hand on guitar's neck. He holds her hand with his own and she smiles at him that sweet smile of hers and Robin smiles a little as well but then he becomes serious.

"Okay, so this is a guitar, it's an instrument," Robin says and she rolls her eyes at him shaking her head. He laughs at her and continues, "I will teach you the strings names first, so the first string from the bottom is E, the second one is B, the thirds from the bo-"

But Regina doesn't listen anymore, she just stares at her handsome husband and licks her lips because damn, he looks sexy when he's acting a tutor, even though she has no idea what he's talking about.

Suddenly she feels a gentle squeeze on her hand and she blinks for a few times until she realizes that it's Robin who realized that she isn't listening.

"So you ask me to teach you but you don't listen," He scolds, shaking his head at her.

"I'm a bad student, what can I say," She shrugs and chuckles but when Robin doesn't join her, she becomes serious again and says, "I don't want the theory, show me chords or whatever it is so I can play a real song or something,"

Robin looks at her disapprovingly as if it's impossible to play chords without the basics but then he shakes his head to himself, it's Regina, to her everything is possible. He sits back beside her, moves his left arm around her and puts her hand into the right position. He lines up her ring finger, middle finger and forefinger in a row on the second fret from the second string from the bottom and then puts his right hand on hers and strums it down through the string.

A broken sound comes off but at least it's not a sound that makes you want to close your eyes. Regina smiles widely and moves her wrists up and down for a few times unevenly trying to imitate the way Henry plays but the sound comes off even more broken then before and Robin closes his eyes. Even he wasn't this bad.

"Okay," Robin says grabbing her wrist to stop her. "So now I will show you another chord," He explains and Regina nods her head, eager to continue.

But after a few hours, when her fingertips start to hurt and the chords become harder and harder, when even the easiest chord A doesn't sound the way it should, she decides that she doesn't want to play anymore, it's useless, so she drops her hand and gives guitar back to Robin, giving up.

She lays on the couch then and crosses her arms over her chest with a little pout playing on her lips.

"So, that's it? You're giving up?" Robin asks in disbelief. This woman in front of him learned magic, dark magic, she did it for years, and now she's giving up on a guitar in the first lesson. He can't believe her.

"It's hard," She groans, "I thought it's easy, you learned it so fast,"

"Oh, come on, it took me months to learn and you know how much work I put in there. And now you're giving up on day one," He looks at her with wide eyes but she just shrugs.

"Well, yes," She nods, "And now you better play me something nice because I can quit making food to your band or even throw you out of my garage," She threatens making him laugh because it's a threat worth nothing, she would never do it but he takes the guitar anyway and smiles at her, then starts playing one of her favourite songs, "Can help falling in love" by Elvis Presley.

A huge smile spreads across her face as she closes her eyes. Robin's voice echoes in the house, he's singing every word with so much love and she just can't help that amazing feeling in her stomach, because she feels so loved with him, because after so many years she finally found her happy ending.

 **Feedback is always appreciated!**


	7. Chapter 7

Day 7: Late Night Confessions. (with a little bit of Regal Believer)

It's Friday night, and Friday means that Henry's staying at Regina's place and they're having a movie or video games night together. And as usual, after a few movies or a few hours of games, they both are asleep on the couch in the living room, snuggled to each other, covered with their favourite blankets from old days.

And usually they sleep like that 'till the morning.

But tonight there's a loud knock on the door which makes Regina jump from her sleep. Henry hears it too and it doesn't take a moment until he's awake, sleep forgotten, staring at his mom with wild eyes as if asking for explanation of what's happening.

But how can she explain if she doesn't understand it herself?

"Mom?" Henry calls, his voice still a little bit sleepy.

She stays quiet for a moment, just thinking about what to do, but then she tells him, "You stay here, I'm going to see who's there." She then rubs her eyes and stands up, puts on the robe and turns to walk to open the door but Henry grabs her wrist.

"What, if there is someone dangerous?" He asks because it wouldn't be the first time. Many times evil has knocked on their door and caused them so much pain, it's no surprise he's worried.

"I have magic," She assures him with a small smile and tries to ease his fear but then there's another loud knock on the door, and Regina jumps a little because it was unexpected, but then with an audible inhale, she turns to Henry, nods her head and he lets go of her wrist, unwillingly but lets go.

She has the door unlocked in a moment and her fingers are shaking just a little bit because she's quite afraid herself because Henry may be right, there can be some evil or some maniac killer or something but she is – was – the Evil Queen, she shouldn't be afraid on anyone.

With that thought, she bends the door handle and opens it just a little bit to see who's there.

And she would have never thought that it is him. Robin Hood.

He's standing at her door with a half-empty bottle of wine in his hand. He's obviously drunk, Regina can tell it from the way he's standing – unstable, very unstable – and the way his eyes shine with something more than just enthusiasm.

Regina wants to close the door, she has no desire to talk with him, she made it clear to him that everything between them is over, that he has to go back to Marian, to fall in love with her again so he could break that damn Snow Queen's curse and everything would be okay again, but Robin rests a hand against the door and looks at her.

"Hi," He finally says as he pushes the door a little so he can see Regina better.

"Robin, what are you doing here?" She asks, her voice shaking just a little bit, she's surprised and angry and shocked at the same time. He's not supposed to be here drunk or here at all. He's just making everything harder for her, for them.

"I missed you,"

"Robin," It's a plea, and Regina Mills doesn't plead but this time she doesn't have another choice. She looks into his blue eyes and whispers, "Go home."

But he doesn't move even an inch. He's standing there and staring into her eyes as she thinks of all the possibilities of how she could make him leave because if he stays, it will hurt them both even more and it already hurts a lot.

"Can we talk?" Robin asks after a while of silence and Regina shakes her head 'no' immediately. They have nothing to talk about. But then he says her name quietly and pushes the door wider until he can step in. "Let me talk with you. It's all I ask," He's pleading her, drunk but sincere, and she stares at him for a good minute and finally gives in.

She sighs as he stumbles into her house – how much has he drunk, she wonders – and then she tells him to go to the kitchen while she goes to the living room where Henry's waiting anxiously.

"Mom?" Henry asks as soon as Regina enters the room and then his eyes widen when he hears steps and then a loud crashing sound (Robin obviously dropped something.)

"It's Robin, he wants to talk," She says and Henry blinks for a few times before he opens his mouth to oppose because he knows how much his mom has suffered because of this man, he was with her every sleepless night, every break down and he would give anything away just to avoid this mess but before he can say anything, another sharp sound echoes from the kitchen. "He's obviously very drunk, so please, go upstairs and rest while I talk with him for a while, okay?" She asks but Henry gives her an anxious look which makes her heart ache because her little prince knows too much, but she manages to smile a little before she tells him, "Henry, I've got this."

She gives him a hug then and pushes him a little and he gets the hint, so he grabs his blanket and walks out of the room, up the stairs to his room.

When Regina hears the door being closed, she sighs and goes to the kitchen.

And of course she finds Robin sitting at the table with a new bottle of wine – her wine – opened and he's drinking right from the bottle. The bottle he has brought is broken on the floor, the liquid spilled on the ground and Regina grits her teeth. He made such a mess.

She ignores him and takes a paper towel before she starts to wipe the liquid from the floor and collect the broken glass while Robin sits there and drinks her expensive wine.

Once finished, she gets up and finds Robin staring at her and she rolls her eyes before throws the paper towel into the bin. She washes her hands and then turns around just to find Robin still staring at her with wide drunk eyes.

"I'm sorry," Robin apologizes when Regina sits down at the table in front of him.

"Finish the wine and then go home, I'm tired," She says coldly and it pains her because she doesn't want to be cold, not with him, but if she does something else, it would definitely hurt her even more.

"Regina, I want to talk," Robin says as he pushes the bottle of wine closer to her but Regina refuses shaking her head.

She's not in the mood for drinking or talking. She's tired and wants to go to sleep, to forget that Robin was here, so she says quietly, "There's nothing to talk about."

"Don't lie to yourself," He takes another gulp of the wine and then continues, "I know this situation is such a mess but please talk to me. Tell me what you're feeling, what you're thinking. Don't shut me out because it's not fair for either of us."

"You need to go home, please,"

"Regina-"

"Don't 'Regina' me," She hisses and closes her eyes inhaling. She needs to stay calm. Deep breaths. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale…

"I love you,"

Her eyes open widely as her breathing stops completely. He didn't just say that, did he? She probably heard wrong but she stares at him in disbelief, then blinks for a few times trying to think of what to do, how to make him leave but the Robin speaks again.

"I love you, Regina Mills," He repeats, "And I don't care that my wife is here, I don't care about my honour. I want to be with you, I want to spend my entire life with you and Henry. Roland misses you and I, and …" He stops because his voice starts to shake but then he takes a deep breath in, finds her eyes and continues, "I don't want to be without you. You're my everything, my happiness."

She's speechless for a second and that one second she forgets about his wife and this mess but then her dark thoughts reminds her in the most painful ways, breaking her heart into million pieces that he's not with her, voices in her head shouts that he's lying again, that he will leave her like everyone else.

"Robin, please," She manages to say, blinking away the tears which managed to collect in her eyes.

He's drunk, he won't remember it in the morning, he can even regret it in the morning and she doesn't want that, so she stands up and takes a bottle away from his hands – he tries to grab it first but his drunk movements are slow enough so he fails - and pours wine into the sink while Robin gasps behind her. Ignoring his reaction, she puts the empty bottle on the cupboard and walks to him, takes his arm.

"You need to leave, Henry's upstairs, we don't need to make a scene in front of my son," She says quietly but Robin shakes his head at her because he doesn't want to leave. He wants to talk first and then stay with her in silence, and then talk again and then-

"Don't make this even harder."

She pulls him by an arm again and this time he stands up, reels and almost collapses but Regina manages to catch him and it takes all her strength to keep him on his feet. But they stumble and suddenly her back hits the wall and Robin presses her to the wall unwillingly but at least he's still standing.

Robin's face is too close to hers, their lips just inches away, their noses almost touching. She manages to move her gaze away from his lips and looks into his eyes but then suddenly he's leaning over until their lips touch in a kiss.

His lips are rough against her soft ones, and the kiss tastes like wine and vodka and whiskey but she doesn't mind it a bit because it's been too long since they were that close but she can't give in so she finds her inner strength and pushes him away before it got even worse.

Thankfully he pulls away but he's still close, staring right into her dark tired eyes, their noses still touching.

"You have to go home," She whispers and then rests her small palms against his chest and gives him a push making him take a step back.

"I don't want to," He murmurs and then he's close again. He kisses her again and this time she raises her hand in the air to slap him but he grabs her wrist gently and holds it while he tastes her sweet lips, the ones he missed so much.

He pulls away then and presses his forehead against hers, breathing heavily.

"I love you, Regina," He whispers again but she doesn't believe him this time because he's drunk, he doesn't understand what he's talking so she pushes him again, grabs him by an arm just like before and starts to drag him out of her house.

But he's stumbling even more now, he barely stands on his feet and Regina can't let him walk home like this. Of course, she can use magic and move him to his campsite but she doesn't want Roland to see him like this, this drunk, broken and hopeless.

So she decides to let him stay.

"Come here," She says and pushes him to the living room.

Once they're in the room near the couch, where just half an hour ago she was sleeping with her son, he collapses there making Regina smile a little. Even drunk he manages to be funny.

She picks her blanket from the ground and puts it over him, and he settles there, so she turns around to leave the room – she doesn't have what to do there anymore. But he grabs her hand on holds it tightly (not enough to hurt but enough to stop her).

"Stay with me," He asks when she turns around to face him but she shakes her head quickly and tries to escape his grip but it's useless. "Please," He asks again making her roll her eyes but then she gives in because her heart wants to be with him and even one moment would be enough, and it already hurts enough, one time wouldn't make it much worse.

"Move," She says then and he immediately releases her hand, moves, clumsy but moves anyway and when there's enough space for her, she lies down beside him. It doesn't even take a moment until he's spooning her from behind, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist.

It doesn't take a minute until Robin falls asleep, she hears him snoring quietly behind her but sleep doesn't come to her. She lies there for hours thinking of how her life could've been if Marian wouldn't be back.

But it doesn't matter because she's here, frozen but here and in the morning Robin will leave Regina again, and all she will have left will be her broken heart but it doesn't matter because she still has a few hours in his loving arms and for now, it's enough.

Feedback is always appreciated!

And to answer vigiita's question: I haven't thought about continuation it but if you have any ideas, prompts, you can send them to me (as review or private message) and perhaps I will continue it. :)

And also, I wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who read and favorited and followed and reviewed! Thank you so so much, it means a lot to me! :)


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